The buses are warming up, teachers are back in their classrooms, stores are starting to sell all those fun supplies…all this means that it’s almost time for school to start! But, school is not here yet, and if you’re running out of ideas to motivate your kids to play outdoors or on their own check out the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Park’s Wildlifer Challenge!
This is not for the lazy or weak at heart. These “challenges” will get your kids aware and active in the outdoors. And, there are prizes for completing 15 missions!!!
g2g can help you do LOTS of the challenges. We’re going fishing (one of the challenges) next week on Wednesday. You can pitch a tent at our camping event on Friday Sept 23. We blogged about catching fireflies. Did you do that? If yes, you’ve got one challenge already completed! Go on a Night Walk and find the big dipper (another Wildlifer Challenge). Or, you can canoe or kayak. Check out the local event that will help you complete this challenge! See how easy and fun this will be!
Wildlifer Challenge Mission
WARNING: if you’re the type of kid who loves to stay indoors, lazily perched on a nice, comfy couch while you text on your phone in front of a television with a game controller in your hand – all day, every day – you are about to be officially challenged!
THE WILDLIFER CHALLENGE:
Should you so choose, you will be taken on a journey of 15 outdoor challenges for you to complete. Upon completion, you will be recognized as an official Kansas WildLifer! The challenges you’ll encounter are not hard to complete if you have one ounce of “WildLifer” spirit inside you. Some challenges may only take you an hour to accomplish, while others may take an entire day. You’ll quickly realize that you are not like everyone else! You’re busting the norm wide open and living life to the fullest!
OUR MISSION:
PROVE to you that getting outside – beyond the playgrounds, ball fields and concrete sidewalks – is a blast!
YOUR MISSION:
PROVE to us that you’re not the kind of kid who wastes all of your valuable free time laying around inside the house all day. That’s not you. You like the thrill of adventure. The mystery of the unknown. Maybe even a little danger from time to time. The sense of freedom. You rock!
Exploring the outdoors will make you think for yourself. You have to be creative. Successful. Not because some video game congratulates you on completing another level, but because you PROVE IT TO YOURSELF with what you can do with a little determination and freedom in the wild outdoors!
PARENTAL WARNING: In today’s world, children are spending more time playing video games, texting, and watching TV than ever before. It’s not that all of these activities are necessarily bad, but anything in excess is usually not a good thing. And lying around the house – all day, every day – is literally killing America’s youth by contributing to an inactive lifestyle, which of course leads to obesity and other social and health problems in our communities. It’s not good. Children all over America are missing out on the opportunities to experience nature, wildlife and the outdoors simply because the experiences have been removed from our culture over time.
PARENTS’ MISSION:
If you look at these challenges and think “I’ve done this before. This will be easy”, consider yourself very fortunate. Someone, somewhere along your life’s journey encouraged and supported you as you explored the outdoor world. And that’s now your mission: to be that someone in your child’s outdoor life and experiences.
If when you see these challenges your lip starts to snarl, your brow starts to furrow and your skin starts to crawl, take a deep breath and relax. We’re not asking for much here, and we truly believe that you’ll enjoy yourself. Today, instead of being outdoors, many people choose to stay in their comfortable little electronic worlds. Think about it. It’s a proven fact that kids today spend record amounts of time staring at video games, cell phones and televisions. What about you? Maybe it’s not a video game, but instead it’s your computer or cell phone. And maybe you need to become a WildLifer too! Two birds with one stone…perfect!
It’s the time of year when we all think about our lives and how we can improve them over the next year. We typically do this in the form of a New Year’s Resolution. 
Our lives get pretty busy, so schedule outdoor play time! I know it seems contrary to the word “play,” to schedule it. But, if it’s on the calendar you wont be tempted to skip playtime or start doing something else instead. Once the kids are outside playing they will soon forget that this was a scheduled activity. 
(I should probably heed my own advise, and I tend to be an overpacker). If it s COLD out – dress approrpriately by packing layers – and lots of them. Long johns, thermals, jeans, sweatshirts, wind breakers, etc.
